sunsol: The future of sun safety
University Major Project
Sunsol is a visionary skincare brand aimed at promoting sun protection among families and Gen Alpha in the UK. Founded on personal experiences and a deep understanding of sun safety, the brand's mission is to make sun protection an everyday habit through innovative products and proactive skincare practices.
Brand Origin and Inspiration
Sunsol is rooted in my personal journey with skincare, sparked by challenges with skin tone and sun exposure growing up in India. A turning point came during a four-hour archery competition in the UK, where I experienced sunburn despite applying sunscreen, highlighting the need for reapplication reminders—a gap Sunsol aims to fill.
Beyond Sunscreen
Sunsol isn’t just about sunscreen; it’s about integrating sun safety into daily routines. The brand's standout product is a UV-detecting sticker that alerts users when it’s time to reapply sunscreen, blending technology, science, and sustainability for both personal and environmental benefits.
Mission and Vision
Sunsol donates a product for every sale to individuals with skin cancer and runs sun safety workshops at schools and community centers. The brand envisions a future where sun safety is second nature, particularly for Gen Alpha, helping to reduce skin cancer through education and empowerment.
Goals and Objectives
Sunsol’s goal is to make daily sunscreen use easier by addressing reapplication issues, engaging Gen Alpha on social media, and innovating with products like UV-detecting stickers and UV color-changing t-shirts that educate and entertain.
Primary Audience: Families with Young Children
Demographics:
Age Range: Parents aged 25-40; children aged 0-12.
Location: Primarily in the UK, focusing on both urban and suburban areas.
Income Level: Middle to upper-middle class, with disposable income to spend on health and wellness products.
Education: Parents are likely to have at least a college education, with an awareness of health and safety issues related to sun exposure.
Secondary Audience: Gen Alpha (Children Born from 2010 Onwards)
Demographics:
• Age Range: 5-14 years old.
• Location: Primarily in the UK, with a focus on digitally connected households.
• Media Consumption: Heavy users of digital media, including YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram. They are also exposed to digital content through family members.
Subgroup: Health-Conscious Families
Demographics:
Age Range: Parents aged 30-45; children aged 0-12.
Location: Urban and suburban areas in the UK, with a focus on health-conscious communities.
Income Level: Upper-middle class, with a higher level of disposable income for health and wellness products.
Sunsol’s Positioning:
Unique Selling Proposition (USP): Sunsol stands out for its creative approach to sun safety, which combines high-quality sunscreen with interactive, educational elements such as UV-detecting stickers and UV color-changing t-shirts. Sunsol also prioritizes sustainability by utilizing eco-friendly packaging and mineral-based formulas that appeal to ecologically aware consumers.
Contextual Research
The Importance of Sun Safety: Sun exposure leads to skin damage, premature aging, and skin cancer. Despite the UK’s overcast weather, UV radiation remains a year-round threat. Sunsol can address this public health concern by promoting sun safety through innovative solutions, particularly for families and children.
Market Trends and Consumer Behavior: The UK skincare market is growing, driven by consumers seeking high SPF, eco-friendly products. Gen Alpha is especially engaged in skincare, influenced by social media, and demands scientifically proven, sustainable products—an opportunity Sunsol meets with UV-detecting stickers and t-shirts.
Competitive Landscape: Major brands like Nivea and La Roche-Posay dominate the sunscreen market, but there’s a shift toward innovative, eco-friendly, and multi-functional products. Sunsol stands out with its family-focused sun safety solutions, offering engaging and educational products that cater to both protection and sustainability.
Technological Innovation in Sun Protection: Advances such as UV-detecting stickers and smart fabrics enhance Sunsol’s offerings, combining practicality and education. These innovations align with Sunsol’s mission to integrate sun safety into daily life.
Social and Cultural Context: With rising wellness trends and environmental concerns, Sunsol’s narrative of sun safety and sustainability resonates with today’s consumers, particularly younger generations like Gen Alpha.
Educational and Ethical Considerations: Sunsol prioritizes public health by educating consumers on sun protection, donating products to skin cancer patients, and holding workshops. This educational and ethical approach strengthens consumer trust.
Sustainability and Environmental Impact: Sunsol’s commitment to eco-friendly materials and packaging reflects modern consumers’ demand for sustainable, responsible brands. Its innovative products place Sunsol as a leader in both sun protection and environmental responsibility.
Strengths: Sunsol offers high-quality sun protection with SPF 50, PA++++, and PPD 52, suitable for all ages. Its non-greasy, quick-absorbing formula and eco-friendly packaging appeal to families and environmentally conscious consumers. Innovative UV Stickers engage children in sun safety and targeting socially active Gen Alpha boosts brand visibility through social media.
Opportunities: Rising skin cancer awareness and eco-conscious consumer trends offer Sunsol a chance to lead in sun safety and sustainability. Social media marketing and healthcare partnerships can enhance visibility and trust, while global expansion, especially at international airports, opens access to new markets.
Weaknesses: Sunsol lacks recognition and loyalty as a new brand, while its premium pricing may deter budget-conscious buyers. UV Stickers require significant marketing to gain traction and the limited product range hinders competitiveness against established brands
Threats: Strong competition from established brands and economic downturns threaten Sunsol’s growth. Regulatory changes and sustainability missteps could impact reputation, and staying aligned with evolving skincare trends is crucial for long-term success.
Brand Name Creation
“This is a visual representation of the brainstorming process behind naming my brand. My objective was to create a name that was not only memorable but also spoke to the demographic I was targeting—families and children. I wanted a name that was short, easy to understand, and memorable, something that both parents and children could remember. After multiple iterations, I decided on ‘Sunsol’ as the brand name since it properly expresses these features.”
Brand name explanation: “Sunsol” combines “sun” (representing sunlight and sun protection) with “sol,” which can be associated with “solution.” It conveys a sense of finding a solution or comfort under the sun.
Logo creation
These are sketches and the ideation process for the Sunsol logo. My objective was to design a playful, eye-catching logo that would appeal to both children and families. I tried other typefaces to get the perfect feel, but none truly matched my concept until I discovered ‘Droog Heavy.’ This typeface was an excellent fit for the playful yet bold style I envisioned for Sunsol. In addition to the logo, I experimented with many different shapes for the UV stickers, drawing inspiration from other companies that employ simple, identifiable designs such as circles, squares, and stars. However, I wanted Sunsol’s logo and UV sticker shape to stand out and be unique. The outside shape of the logo would also serve as the shape for the UV stickers, so I experimented with many shapes to find one that both suited the design and looked good as a UV sticker. This technique enabled me to guarantee that both the logo and the UV stickers were distinct and memorable, precisely aligned with the brand’s identity.
These screenshots capture the initial stages of Sunsol’s brand identity development, including early explorations of the logo, color palette, visual language, and font selection.
Initial logo concept
This is the first version of the Sunsol logo, and while I was initially happy with the forms, something seemed odd. After collecting feedback from my professors, I recognized the color palette needed to be refined. The draft used too many colors, diluting the overall effect of the brand logo. In my quest to develop an attractive and appealing design for my target audience, I overlooked the value of simplicity and minimalism in the logo color palette. Upon reflection, I realized that a logo should have a concentrated and consistent color palette to ensure clarity and identification. Taking this feedback into consideration, I reduced the color palette to five colors that I feel best represent the Sunsol brand. This more refined palette not only better complements the brand’s identity, but also improves the logo’s visual appeal, making it more effective and memorable.
Logo Alignment
Clearspace Logo
Primary Typeface
Font Selection
I picked the Droog Heavy typeface for the Sunsol logo because I feel it perfectly conveys the playful and approachable vibe I want to communicate, especially given my target demographic of families and children. The font’s bold and heavy style conveys reliability and protection, which is consistent with Sunsol’s main objective of sun safety. At the same time, its funny nature gives a feeling of joy to the logo, making it more memorable and attractive to younger consumers and their parents. For me, this font choice unifies everything, expressing both the brand’s protective nature and its warm, engaging attitude. I needed something that sticks unique while yet feeling trustworthy, and Droog Heavy nails that balance.
Glyphs used in visual language
Because of their distinguishing properties, I included several glyphs from the Droog Heavy typeface in Sunsol’s visual language. By including these glyphs, I was able to bring a feeling of fun and uniqueness into Sunsol’s design, ensuring that the visual components appeal to both children and families while keeping a strong brand identity.
Secondary typeface
color palette
Visual Language
Physical Stickers for Brand promotion
Digital Stickers for online promotion
UV Stickers Initial Process
During this stage of the process, I focused on developing illustrations for the Sunsol UV-detective stickers. Initially, I explored using popular Marvel characters as part of a collaboration between my brand and Marvel. I drew a few illustrations with these characters, but after receiving feedback from my professor, I noticed some important points. First, big companies like Marvel are cautious about how their characters are depicted. They frequently ask that their characters be represented precisely as they are, without any changes. This constraint would limit my creative flexibility. Second, I saw that these Marvel-themed graphics would not accurately reflect Sunsol’s unique brand identity.
Keeping this in mind, I decided to change my approach. Instead of using external characters, I created illustrations based on Sunsol’s branding features. I started with the Sunsol logo’s typeface (Droog Heavy), then chose interesting alphabets from it and turned them into fun, playful emoticons. These creative illustrations not only complement Sunsol’s brand identity but also offer a distinct and unified visual aspect to the UV-detective stickers, making them an essential component of the brand.
UV Stickers layout
UV Stickers Prototyping and Experimenting
After making digital variations of the Sunsol UV stickers, I wanted to experiment with an existing UV sticker brand, Alevial, to test if my idea of printing illustrations onto UV stickers would work with the UV printer in the university print lab. I was particularly curious about how the UV printing process would interact with the stickers’ UV-sensitive material, given that the printer uses UV light to cure the ink during printing.
To begin, I drafted the file and prepped it for printing, starting with trial tests on plain white paper and a translucent sheet to confirm proper alignment. Once satisfied with the arrangement, I proceeded to print on the UV stickers, recording several videos to document the experiment. The results were surprising. As soon as the printer began, the UV light activated the stickers, turning them into a bright violet hue. However, after about five minutes, the stickers slowly reverted to their clear form. The experiment was successful, demonstrating that the UV printing method was effective, even with UV-sensitive material. I then printed additional stickers in the Sunsol brand colors, and they worked brilliantly.
Sunsol Sunscreen Packaging Layout
Sunsol Sticky UV Detective Stickers
Packaging Layout
UV Color Changing T-shirt
Future Promotion Planning
Launching Sunsol at an international airport excites me, as airports provide access to a diverse, global audience with varying sun protection needs. Sunsol's versatility makes it ideal for travelers visiting sunny destinations or outdoor locations, where sun protection is essential. Promoting Sunsol as a must-have travel item directly addresses these needs, offering convenience for tourists who may have forgotten sunscreen. To enhance engagement, I envision handing out Sunsol-themed stickers for luggage and providing free samples of sunscreen or UV-detecting stickers, encouraging immediate use and fostering positive brand associations. Strategically located in high-traffic areas like departure gates or baggage claim, these efforts would maximize visibility among outbound and inbound travelers. Collaborations with duty-free stores, airlines, or travel organizations could strengthen the initiative by stocking Sunsol or including it in travel packs, building trust and reach. Finally, social media campaigns with unique hashtags, pop-up events, and memorable interactions would create buzz, amplifying Sunsol’s global presence beyond the airport.
